China continues to advance its defense market with the long-range kamikaze drone ASN-301 (also known as JWS-01), which at first glance can be associated with the Shahed-136. This development was last showcased at the Airshow China 2024, which was memorable for the demonstration of the J-35A, a replica of the F-35, and the mockery of the Chinese towards the Russian Su-57, which was displayed abroad for the first time.
In a recently released video, its operation against radar systems was even demonstrated. In fact, the ASN-301 is not just a kamikaze drone; it specializes in destroying air defense systems thanks to its passive radar homing head. This sets it apart from Iranian "Shaheds," which are designed to hit targets with pre-known coordinates.
Initially, information about it emerged back in 2017 when it was showcased during a military parade celebrating the 90th anniversary of the Chinese army. Following this, it was actively displayed and taken to exhibitions, although there is no information regarding the existence of export contracts for it.
In reality, the ASN-301 is not a version of the Iranian "Shahed," but is directly derived from the Harpy drone produced by Israel Aerospace Industries. These were acquired completely legally in the 1990s. Reports suggest that China ordered 100 sets of these drones for $55 million during that decade.
This was sufficient for China to thoroughly understand how Harpy drones are constructed. However, the story continued in 2004, when Beijing, taking advantage of the contract terms, sent its drones to Israel for upgrades.
At that point, the United States intervened, attempting to pressure Israel into canceling the contract and not returning the Harpy drones to China. Despite the pressure, the Israelis returned the drones to the Chinese, albeit without upgrades, which led the White House to threaten to exclude Israel from the F-35 program.
After this incident, it appears that China decided to simply copy the drone, including features such as the retractable antennas of the passive radar homing system, which could be mistaken for additional stabilizers.
0In this context, it is worth noting that Harpy is not an original Israeli development. The "father" of Harpy, from which the Shahed-131 and Shahed-136 were derived, is either the German DAR (Die Drohne Antiradar) from Dornier or the ARD-10 from Kentron in South Africa.
1Additionally, Taiwan also has its own copy of Harpy, as at least NCSIST showcased a completely analogous solution named Chien Hsiang in 2023.
2